Liquid or gel laundry products are preferred by many consumers, over powder detergents. Both have been described. See, for instance, WO 99/06519 and WO 99/27065, Klier et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,538,662), GB 2 355 015, Lance-Gomez et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,695), Hawkins (U.S. Pat. No. 5,952,285), Akred et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,515,704), Farr et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,900,469).
A major drawback of liquids and gels is that when consumer stops dispensing a desired quantity, it is in fact difficult to interrupt the flow—the detergent continues to drip. A liquid/gel detergent composition which snaps back at the end of pouring is desirable.
Although fatty acids have been mentioned in prior disclosures, they are mentioned as surfactants (i.e. neutralized to soaps), or, in any event, used in fully neutralized form and exemplified in fully neutralized compositions. Thus, although prior disclosures may mention “fatty acids,” it is specifically non-neutralized fatty acids and their amount vis-à-vis the total surfactant that are employed in the present invention, in order to obtain liquids or gels with the desired snap-back property.